Ishant down with viral fever; Dinda on standby

Paceman Ishant Sharma Tuesday skipped the practice session due to viral fever but the team management expects him to be fit for the opening cricket Test against England, starting Thursday.

As a precautionary measure Bengal paceman Ashok Dinda, who is with his state Ranji side, has been asked to join the team as a standby. The Indian team, except Sharma, sweated it out at the Motera Stadium this morning.

BCCI Secretary Sanjay Jagdale said they are hopeful that the lanky paceman will recover before the start of the series-opener here. "Ishant Sharma has got viral fever. He is expected to be fit for the first Test between India and England. However, Ashok Dinda has been told to fly to Ahmedabad as a standby," Jagdale said in a press release.